Damonds are a girl’s best friend’ – the age old adage still holds true, and there is but one thing that is definitely more pleasing to a woman’s heart than a diamond… An even bigger one! Alas the cost of these gems, more than their sparkle, will leave you wide eyed. Unless you find a way to procure a stone which looks as spectacular, but is a lot more affordable than the legendary solitaire. Faced with the challenge to please all jewellery lovers, irrespective of their wallet sizes, tech guys of the jewellery industry created a chimera and called it the ‘invisible setting’ of stones. What they designed was an illusion. A few smaller stones, most often diamonds, are clustered and set together in a way that makes the composite look like a single rock, so-called the ‘Invisible setting’. Though there are some vague rumours that this type of setting was first discovered in France 200 years ago, the fact has not been validated and contemporary jewellers say that it is no more than a romanticised version of the history of this technique. The invisible setting of diamonds was introduced in India in 2003.

The technique…
Essentially, in the invisible setting, diamonds are placed tightly next to each other with not a trace of any visible metal in-between, hence creating an illusion of a single solitaire. This technology is also called tension or pressure setting. Though the invisible setting does facilitate design, its main selling point is that it obviously brings down the cost of the product. According to Karmendra Minawala, Pallazio – Danabhai Arcade Pvt. Ltd, invisible settings were seen on the market about four- and-a-half-years ago, and were first promoted by ‘Nirvana’ who made jewellery, using the same technique. That stood out as a part of their main collection. He adds, “It’s very popular now because of its sparkle and fire”.

The different methods…
For round stones, pressure setting is used. In this method, the stones are set overlapping each other in a circular way, without any other support to a central diamond, except the pressure of the surrounding stones. Thus, making the cluster look flawless, like one big round stone.

For princess-cut diamonds (perfectly square stones), tension setting is most popular. Here, the diamonds are first grooved from the sides. This enables the tongue (metal below the diamond) to hold the entire piece in place. Since the metal cannot be seen, the stones simply sit side-by-side to create the appearance of a single solid surface of gems. Most jewellery designers use the tension setting in engagement and wedding rings.

Words of caution…
The degree of precision required for this technique is daunting and is best accomplished by jewellers who have the set-up for making little ‘adjustments’ to the diamonds (trimming them slightly to fit etc.) as any extra pressure of one stone against another causes irreparable damage. Also, it’s important to know that grooved diamonds are fragile along the notches. Bharat Mantri, GM, Production, Gili India Ltd., elaborates, “In order to achieve great precision we need qualified and skilled workers using state-of-the-art equipment for grooving, casting and polishing. Not all jewellers can make jewellery with this type of setting because it requires huge investments in machinery and manpower. Unless produced on a mass scale, invisible setting is not a viable option.” Besides, keep an eye for ‘fake’ invisible-set jewellery. Instead of interlocking diamonds, standard princess-cut stones are used which, under close inspection, show a miniscule amount of white gold or platinum between the stones. Invisible-set jewellery is only beautiful when done right, by the experts. Jewellery in tension or pressure settings, need extra care. The stones used are held together simply by the stones themselves. Hence, any sort of abrasion or impact could result in the loss of a stone.

Expert views…
However, Mantri thinks that the popularity of the invisible setting has now waned, contrary to when it started off three years back. He says, “The demand is slow because of two possible reasons. Firstly and quite simply, the trends are changing very fast. Secondly, the drawback for this type of setting, especially for the round shaped diamonds, is that the diamonds overlap to hide in-between space and this space attracts dust which cannot be taken out using normal cleaners at home. Therefore, the product tends to looks dull after some use.” With regards to the princess-cut diamond setting, he points out, “When set in this way, square diamonds produce a reflection which lacks lustre and can be noticed by diamond experts. Also, once the princess-cut diamond is grooved, the resale value of the diamonds reduces by 20 per cent”. But, Minawala is of the opinion that the trend of the invisible setting is not dying out. In fact, he says that since more people know about it now, there is a continuous demand for the products. “Of course a lot depends on the design of the piece rather than merely the setting,” he emphasises.

Despite the minor drawbacks, invisible setting has become a very visible style. It started out as a trend with engagement and wedding rings and moved on to more detailed and fancier designs for bangles and necklaces. Invisible settings aren’t just for diamonds, the method can be used with a number of other precious and semi-precious gemstones as well. In fact, all kind of coloured stones can be set in this fashion. So, if glitter, glamour and a rock is what you covet, but just can’t seem to fit it into your budget, definitely consider the invisible setting as an option. After all, it’s not always about the money, honey!

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